Work Text:
In the playroom of Wammy’s boarding school, Mello scowls when his visiting friend, Matt, greets their newest student in German.
Coming over, Matt says, “Don’t be like that. I brought you something.” Opening his jacket, he discreetly reveals a bar of chocolate in his pocket.
“Thank you.” Mello looks around the room, and his scowl returns in full force when his eyes land on said newest student, a boy nicknamed Near by the others with the full name of Nate Rivers.
Looking up from the wooden blocks he’s playing with, Near says, “I’ve never told when people had extra food.”
Sighing, Mello takes the chocolate.
“Your English has gotten better, Near,” Matt says. “Are you able to eat all your food at mealtimes, yet?”
“No,” Mello sourly answers. “He still won’t eat meat, he threw up when Linda tried to feed him pineapple, and he ate a whole raw potato that he somehow managed to get, and then, he wouldn’t eat hardly any of his lunch yesterday.”
“But you weren’t blamed for him getting the potato, right?”
“Roger thought I might have, but he seemed to believe Near when Near said I didn’t. Someone ought to dump him into a fairy circle!”
“Roger or I,” Near inquires.
“It’s Roger or me, Near!”
Tugging Mello, Matt says, “C’mon, let’s go see if the TV’s free.”
…
Playing with the TV’s antenna, Matt says, “You’ve never been like this with little kids before.”
“He got a higher score in science class this morning, and he was awfully smug about it!”
“Well, it was usually only the smart who survived places like those, wasn’t it?”
Slumping down, Mello bites his chocolate. “Him coming from those camps doesn’t give him a free pass to act like he’s better than everyone.”
The picture on the TV clears, and carefully setting the antenna down, Matt comes to sit next to Mello. “He doesn’t know how to act.”
“Then, he should be in a hospital or something.”
Getting his knees underneath him, Matt slings an arm over Mello’s shoulders, and peering down over the couch, he gives a small nod to Near sitting on the floor.
Twirling his hair, Near returns the nod before going back to playing with a yarn ball.